Clothespin



G. W. WALKER.

I CLOTHESPIN. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 16, 1920.

Patented Feb; 15,1921.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE W. WALKER, 0F OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.

onornnsrm.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented nears, 1921.

Application filed September 16, 1920. Serial No. 410,582.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. lVALKnn, a citizen of the United States and a resident of Oakland, county of Alameda, State has for its primary object to provide a novel and improved form of clothespin which includes a double or compound anchor grip for the clothes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a clothespin which will be far superior to any known devices. of this character and at the same time will be cheap to produce, easily manipulated. in use and capable of oifering a practical solution of the difficulties experienced with devices oi this kind.

In the accompanying drawing Figure 1 is a side elevation of the preferred form of the clothespin; Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the same form; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the line hook and Fig. 1 is a side view of a second or modified form.

According to Fig, 1 the flukes (5) ofthe anchor shaped holder (6) are presented outwardly'and upwardly and terminate in beveled faces. The upper end of the holder is constructed with a T-head (7) having under cut notches or arm pits (8). Confined between the beveled faces just mentioned and the notches or arm pits (8) are the movable oblong blocks (9), both of which being made with rounded ends to conform to the notches or arm pits and with their opposite ends beveled to correspond with the slant of the beveled faces on the upturned ends of the flukes. The slanting or beveled ends of the blocks are further provided with longitudinal recesses (10) which are made to receive the looped ends of the wire spring (11) which extends along opposite sides of both blocks and further looped as at (12) to provide a spring tension device. From the loops (12) the wire extends over the T- head (7) where it is tightly twisted as at (13) to exert a pull to the blocks and con fine their rounded ends in the notches or arm pits. To prevent displacement of the wire, the T-head is notched as at (14) with the wire confined in the same.

From the above it will be seen the blocks are confined in place by the spring wire and the influence of the wire will normally tend to pull the slanting ends of the blocks against the beveled faces. Thus in use either one of the blocks may be pushed inwardly away from their normal position to leave an unobstructed opening over the upturned ends of the flukes; when released the blocks will return to normal position under the influence of the spring and catch the material to be hooked to the device. Both blocks operate alike and while the pe culiar construction of the device will offer a most convenient clothespin its adaptation is in no way confined to this use, as it also finds expression in a clasp hook or rather a compound clasp hook capable of use in various ways. 7

So far as concerns the means for suspending the device from a line .or other support attention is directed to the hook made from the ends of the spring wire. Instead of cutting the wire after twisting it over the T-head it is first spread apart, then each wire (15) and (16) is bent transversely as at (17) and (18), looped downwardly as at (19) and (20) then presented upwardly as at (21) and (22), and again bent transversely as at (23) and (2e) and then again turned downwardly in a V-shaped loop (25). As best shown inrfull lines in Figs. 1 and 2 by constructing the hook in this manner the clothesline (26) may be passed under the V-shaped loop (25) and confined between the parallel transverse bends (17 and (1?) l and (23) and (24), and thus provide a grip which will prevent sliding of the device along the line. If desirable the hook made by the first two transverse bends (17) and (18) may be used to suspend the device from the line as shown in dotted lines in Figs. 1 and 2. This latter feature will not however oifer the advantages of an antislipping suspension means The second form shown in Fig. 4 while producing a compound catch, involves a slightly different construction in that in lieu of the anchor shaped holder. a tubular pin A is used having an enlarged end B flat on its two broad sides and with its narrow sides rounded and slanting. The opposite end of the pin begins with a slight increased diameter as at C tapering inwardly and with an enlargement or head D having a transverse groove and two opposite flat sides or faces. A spring wire E is used in this form to clamp the opposed fingers F to the sides of the pin. This wire may be bent at the top to provide the same suspendin means described with reiierence to l and 2 a and after being twisted over the head D and ta ered nart C of the sin.

' blocks arran 'ed on each side 01 confined in the groove provided therein terminates 1n a pair o-"L' looped ends Gend lrl.

The loops extend downwardly of the fingers and through under cut notches l in the sides thereof. Arranged on the inside of each linger is a shoulder or spur 5 which is dished out to, correspond to the shape of the These shoulders or spurs J bear against the under sides or the head D and are maintained thereagainst by the spring Wire loops G- and H; The free; ends of the lingers provide Inanipulat ing projection-s l: which when squeezed together'willopen the opposite endsoif the fingers against the iniiuenceoi' the spring loops and enable the material who gripped to be inserted under the clampi ends of the fingers. lt mighthe added that the clamping ends 01 the fingers are dished out on the inside and also cnt'on a slant to conforni to the shape of the narrow side-softhe enlarged end B of the pin against which they 'bear.

The material from which either for-in of blocks on the holder with their lower ends n eta-l would meet the requiremesses normally hearing against theupwa rdly pre sented oi" the tlulres under tension.

2.4 3 clothespin including 7 an anchor shaped holderhanng a t-head atone end and a pair of outwardly and upwardly presented fiukes at its opposite end, a pair of blocks arranged on each side or the said holder between said l-head and the sa1d fiukes, and a spr ng device for holding sa d blocks on the holderwith their lower ends normally hearing against the upwardly presented ends of the'fiukes under tension, sald spring device comprising a \v'llfi including a pair of loops each of which extending alone 'o posite sides of each block and con- 11, k) L i Y 7 4: nned in bl ans verse slots in one bottom 0 each block, said Wire being twisted over the head of the holder and terminating in a sus ension hook for the device.

3. A Clothespin comprising a pin shaped holder having a flat sided enlargement at one end anda head at opposite end, a pair of opposed lingers associated with the holder, aspring wire twisted over'the head of the holder and includi a pair, of loops extending along opposite sides of thefingers and through cuts in the sides thereof, sl onh ders on the fingers adapted to bear Let the undersides of the head of the holder un der tension of saidspring wire and hook on the said wire -tor suspending the clothespin' l'OLl support. 1 V

A sus ension hook for clothespins and v the like comprising two strands of Wire bent to form av double hook having parallel tr: verse bends in. di erent planes, ooth of the said hcoks eda lted to cooperate one with other when i one line is engagedhy the one of the tWobut the said higher lg inactive when a line is engaged Wei hook.

I v GEORGE WliLlER. 

